Michael Matthew victorious despite the storm
Michael Matthews delivered a punishing performance to overcome harsh elements in SuperCrit Round 11.
The 18 year old Matthews rode a hard race from the front, forcing all other contenders on the back foot, before delivering a final sprint to the line that wasn't to be matched by anyone else.
Coming home in second was the evergreen Graeme Allbon, followed by Suzuki Uno racer Sam Genge in 3rd.
A soaking Matthews was happy with his win, clearly enjoying his heavy training regime in the lead up to the National Road Titles in January.
'That was fun!' Matthews initially remarked upon coming in from the rain sodden course. 'I don't mind the wet at all and when the conditions are like that you just have to go a bit slower in the corners but its still pretty quick on those bends!'
Matthews was also went home with a few bucks in his pocket after taking out both Christmas cash sprints on offer.
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How it unfolded
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With heavy dark storm clouds looming ominously over Stromlo and the odd rain droplet landing on the course, many racers took the option to watch the race rather than face nature in her fury.
However, for those on course it was the fury of Matthews that they were feeling initially as he launched a hard turn straight from the starting line.
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Within two laps Matthews had split the race into three groups, with strong crosswinds proving to be the bane of the riders caught down the back.
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Sam Genge attacked solo from the front group, skipping away to a handy lead as Marc Williams (Rideshop), Simon Niemeyer (ACT Masters) and Graeme Allbon took a breather from the insistent early pace of Matthews.
As Genge's lead grew, the front runners of Williams, Matthews, Allbon and Fabio Calabria (Team Type 1) commenced the chase behind.
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Genge maintained his solo lead for another two laps, until the strong winds took their toll on his legs and he reluctantly returned to the bunch.
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Again Matthews surged hard in the bunch, this time seeing Allbon join him with the duo enjoying a 20 metre advantage. A hard strong turn of pace from Williams though neutralised the lead of Allbon and Matthews, returning the leading group of six together once again.
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At this point though Mother Nature unleashed her christmas blessing on the SuperCrit competitors, lashing the course with a monsoonal amount of water that soon soaked competitors and officials alike to the bone.
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As the commissaire declared a shortened race and gave the racers three laps to go, lightning began crashing down upon the Brindabella Ranges, creating a spectacular setting for the final laps.
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Not to be deterred by a puny bit of lightning, Matthews unleashed his own thunder upon the front group, surging hard from the front of the group at a lap and a half to go. Following vigilantly upon his wheel was Allbon, with Genge and Niemeyer also scrambling to stay in contact.
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As the level of water washing over the track turned into a torrent, Matthews gingerly picked his way through the final corners, leading the riders around in an aquatic game of cat and mouse.
As they threaded their way through the final bend, Allbon unleashed an early sprint on the riders, gambling on his strength down the final straight in the strong winds. In what looked to be the winning move, Allbon cleared out on all riders to 3 length lead.
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However Matthews had other ideas, and from third wheel he raced hard after Allbon, splashing past him in the final few metres to take a spectacular victory in the heavy rain and spray.
Allbon settled for 2nd, while Genge flicked Niemeyer for third.
Matthews wins SuperCrit 11 followed closely by Allbon
As riders were towelling down after the race, the rain cleared and a magnificent backdrop was provided for the presentations courtesy of a superb rainbow set against the the scenic view of Telstra Tower from Stromlo Forest Park.
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As this was the final race for 2008, the SuperCrit Team would like to take this opportunity to wish all competitors and officials a very Merry Christmas and a great New Year, and we look forward to more hard racing in 2009.
Storm clears post race over Stromlo Crit Track and Telstra Tower
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Top Ten Race Results SuperCrit Round 11
1. Michael Matthews
2. Graeme Allbon
3. Sam Genge
4. Simon Niemeyer
5. Mitch Lovelock-Fay
6. Scott Sparkman
7. Lewis Hopkins
8. Mark Gillett
9. Marc Williams
10. Fabio Calabria
With heavy clouds looming and the racing surface awash with rain, race commissaires deemed the conditions unsuitable for SuperCrit standards and called the event off.
Mitchell Lovelock-Fay lay down the challenge to the riders on offer early in the event, however it came down to the final sprint into which Simon Dwyer went with a two point buffer. Lovelock-Fay took the five points, however Dwyer held off a fast finishing Brad Lovelock, holding on to his lead by the narrowest of margins. 
Unfortunately neither the Coopers nor the cash eventuated with the soaking riders hoping just for a dry towel and hot cup of tea.
An immediate surging from some money hungry riders saw the bunch split at the start of the second lap.
20 seconds clear again and the aggressive duo looked as fresh as the first time they escaped. This time the main field reacted sooner, with Forrest, Matthew Meisel-Dennis, Angus Harding and Bomball lifting the pace.
As Genge swept through the final bend, Phelan popped out from the ideal position to surge past Genge and make his winning charge to the line. Matthews also snuck past the fading Genge to grab second, with an outstanding ride from mountain biker Ben Henderson seeing him nail fourth place. Marc Williams backed up from his late attacks to hang in for fifth.
Angus Harding, Michael Tolhurst and Scott Sparkman also made the split joining the quartet of Rogers, Skipper, Phelan and Matthews to make it a lead group of seven.
With 10 minutes left on the clock, the lead group started to sense a lap in the taking and the tempo increased yet again. By now the main pack were doing all they could to avoid being caught, yet it was not to be.
With Greg Long and his camera lurking in the clover, fame beckoned and it wasn’t long before a group of five or so riders, including Amanda Koerber and several of the Bilbys women’s team, jumped away from the bunch and got themselves organised into a threatening rhythm. The bunch driven by Merryn Steer, Linda Rigby and Liz Lowe quickly responded to the threat and chased hard, stringing the scrambling peloton single file the length of the back straight. The break was brought back in but the strong chase had caught several riders by surprise and caused several splits in the group. Kate Mollinaeux, Sarah Goodwin, Megan Mackenzie and Emily Clark were some of those caught out and had to work hard to latch back on. Eventually they brought it all back together, but perhaps the effort made them less of a threat in the finish.
With numbers slightly up on the first two weeks, despite several riders stepping up to WB on Wednesday, it seems the word is starting to get around. Three rounds so far and three exciting women’s C races with three separate winners: Christina Thorne, Helene Blackwell and now Rowena Headlam. In a measure of just how evenly poised, tough and dynamic the WC racing has been, last week’s winner, Blackwell, finished outside the top ten last night! The race is proving to be a great success and is a pleasure to run and watch each week. As we promised, we’ll reassess numbers periodically but we want to keep the race going as long as the demand is there. The SuperCrit Thursday team is pleased to announce that Women’s C will be continuing for at least another three weeks.
